Like this:

I’ve just taken a sunny but very chilly walk around Greenstead Slopes and Ghost Wood for the first time of this New Year. I saw lots of lovely birds due to the absence of foliage on most of the trees; robins, pigeons, a splendid jay as well as lots of pretty little other things flying about; however the downside to there being high visibility is that they can spot you a mile off. Subsequently I didn’t manage to capture much in the way of bird photos.

Jack Frost has been busy and at noon there was still a bitter chill in the air. On the positive side this made the mud in the woods much firmer to walk on, although some of the boggier areas on the slopes were icy. I was quite surprised to see catkins out as I walked along the stream.

The council have been out chopping back all the flora on the slopes, which now looks a massive space, albeit relatively featureless. Hopefully it’ll all grow back in the spring.

It still beggars belief that some dog owners are responsible enough to bother to bag up their pet’s ‘leavings‘ but not quite responsible enough to walk a few yards to the nearest red bin. However frustrating though it is a little better than those who continue to allow their dogs to use the area as a public toilet.